06/09/2017
Am I ashamed to ask of God? Am I too embarrassed by my condition or too ashamed of my sin to reach out to Him for help? When should we bring our needs or our contrition before Him in prayer?
As I contemplate this dilemma it is plain to see that if I could only come to the Father when my troubles were light, or my sins of little consequence, I would never kneel before Him. However, this is not His desire for our relationship.
“For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”
Luke 11:10 ESV
I remember occasions in my life when I was in some sort of quandary and needed help; I needed to speak with my father about what was happening in my life, but at the same time... felt embarrassed to do so. By revealing my problem I was admitting I had failed in some way, or that I was unable to handle my own affairs. Has this ever happened in your life? Have you felt alone because of your perceived inability to speak to a parent? Were you afraid they might think less of you, or deride you for your actions? When at last you humbled yourself and came to them weren't you relieved, and even if your problem didn't go away, didn't you feel like a weight had been lifted from you? Being assured of that acceptance and love in the face of our failures is like a cool compress on a feverish forehead... it feels good and brings relief. God wants us to come to Him.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:6-7 ESV
Humbling ourselves and admitting our shortcomings and failures is the first step in overcoming them. How can we gain forgiveness or defeat our abject poverty of body or spirit without first admitting them to the one who can help us with them? God is not surprised by our sins, and He knows our needs, what He is waiting for is us to overcome the one thing that keeps us from Him... our pride.
We have the propensity to take pride in our accomplishments and even our own righteousness, but how can we possibly deceive ourselves in believing that anything we have hasn't been given us? We eat because God provides, and we are Holy because of His grace and forgiveness. When we claim responsibility for the things in our lives we are robbing God of the glory that should be His.
“For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”
1 Corinthians 4:7 ESV
So if all we have comes from God, and our ability to become righteous is paved by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, what is there to keep us from humbly bringing our needs and sins before God? In what do we take pride? Satan deceives us into thinking we are great, and that we can steer our lives without the need for God, and isn't that what we are doing when we feel that we can't, or that we don't need to, come before Him? Aren't we succumbing to the temptation of pride and self worth?
In all we are, and all we do, we should seek God. In the high moments of life we should praise His provision, and in the low places we should praise His strength and forgiveness. In admitting our shortcomings we are giving Him the glory in our lives, and removing our self-pride as a stumbling block before us.
“Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”
Psalms 55:22 ESV
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for your provision and the very faith I now come to you with. I thank you for hearing my prayers and answering my many needs. Holy Father, never let my pride come between us; never let me think that my accomplishments or ability to walk in a righteous manner could be achieved without your guiding hand. Jesus suffered, not me, and Jesus was crucified, not me, and Jesus defeated sin and death, not me... Jesus was resurrected that I would one day be resurrected as well. There is no claim by me to these things, and it is only by them that I am worthy of your forgiveness and love. Most Gracious God I beg at your feet for those things in my life that lift me from my human condition. I seek your providing hand and the grace that lifts my faith. Father, In my unworthiness I pray you find some glimmer of worth; in my disgrace I pray you forgive, and that, in this, your glory might abound.
Rich Forbes